His search for the child he was made for has tugged on thousands of heartstrings.

The Christmas tale of the Ballymena Bear may have been produced on a shoestring budget but, judging by the response, the short film is giving high street giants John Lewis and Sainsbury's a run for their money in the festive advert stakes.

Within days of being posted online, more than 20,000 people have viewed the bear's search for a little girl in the Co Antrim town.

The touching film was produced by Grafters Design Studio, with the star of the show made by Michelle Lowry, who runs a gift shop in the town.

It has been viewed in countries including Australia, Iraq and Russia.

Creative Consultant Stephen Reid, 29, from Ballymena-based Grafters Designs, said the response had been unbelievable.

He said: "I can't quite believe how many hits we have had. We have been incredibly lucky - we are at almost 23,000 in three days.

"Shrewsbury, which is a much bigger town, did something similar and in two years they have had about 18,000 views. That was what we were aiming for, so we are delighted at the success."

The short film tells the story of a little brown bear which falls out of a box while being couriered. The bear has to scour the shops and cafes of Ballymena to track down the little girl for whom he was made.

Eventually, the bear is reunited just in time for the Christmas lights switch-on.

The movie was created after a request by Ballymena Business Improvement District to showcase the town in the run-up to Christmas.

The short film has won thousands of fans, including broadcaster Eamonn Holmes.